.Hack//ZERO ME:1072
ME:1072[edit]
The wind picked up again.
I heard the sound of rocked grinding against the marble floor.
I looked up at that Thing.
In my vision clouded by pain and envy, I saw the figures of Aura and Sora.
Aura was huddled in a ball, her body trembling, and Sora stood above her while surveying the area as if trying to make sure his presence was recognized.
“Ah…”
I gasped.
A spark of inspiration hit me.
This – this scene was flipped from how it had been last time.
Last time, Sora had been the one in pain. He had been trembling then just like Aura was trembling now.
The two of them opposed each other.
Like two magnets pushing against each other, they were destined to repel one another.
Aura – appearing as a frail little girl. And Sora – as a dangerous, violent, abominable monster. They were nothing alike, and yet at the same time, extremely similar.
They were both suffering, both hurting, and both so very fragile.
“…urh…”
Sora made a guttural noise.
The foot he had set on the floor staggered suddenly.
The patterns of light covering his body flickered for a moment like the flame of a furnace being buffeted by the wind.
“Sora?”
I felt like I was being drawn in.
But then in the next moment, I was being thrown against the wall with a roar.
I crumpled to the floor and my vision blurred again, but I still stood back up.
Sora’s form suddenly looked unstable.
He had a puzzled look in his eyes as he looked down at Aura.
“Sora!”
At the sound of my voice, Sora’s shoulders seemed to flinch in reaction.
It might have just been my imagination. I may have been trying to convince myself of something that wasn’t there.
I wanted him to respond to my voice, so maybe I was just seeing what I wanted to see.
I steadied myself against the wall and slowly lifted myself up.
In the silent cathedral, the only sounds left were my breathing and the rustling of my clothes, which seemed deafening to my ears now.
“……Aaaaa…”
It sounded like Sora was having to force his voice out of his throat.
He moved slowly, awkwardly, and turned his head towards me.
He was covered in gray stones. Ominous patterns of light flickered in and out between the cracks. His arms were huge and misshapen.
But even in that state, Sora was still Sora.
My precious Sora.
“…Aura……”
“Right.”
I nodded to him.
“Carl.”
“Right.”
Sora started mumbling my name over and over again.
Like he was trying to learn a word in another language for the first time.
“Carl.”
“Sora.”
I repeated his name until I lost count of how many times I’d said it.
And yet even then, every time I said it, I felt happy.
Even at a time like this.
――No matter what was happening.
Sora lifted his arms awkwardly and held them out towards me.
There was a glimmer of light in Sora’s eyes now.
“Please……”
‘Please help me.’
‘Please stop me.’
I didn’t know which he was asking me to do, or if it could be something completely different from either of those.
Sora’s plea felt more like a prayer than a request. That much I understood.
I bit down on my lip and tasted the metallic tang of blood on my tongue, then looked to Aura.
Her body – draped in pearlescent clothing – didn’t seem to be moving anymore.
Almost as if she were already――.
A sense of terror rose up from deep within me, shaking me to my core.
Sora wanted to kill Aura.
Sora wanted to save Aura.
Those two desires were fighting for dominance within Sora’s mind.
He was struggling against it, and it was torturing him.
I looked at Aura.
I looked at Sora.
Sora’s arm fell off his body as if the thread holding it up had been cut.
At the same time, a howl echoed through the Cathedral. I ran towards Aura so fast my vision blurred again.
I grabbed her small body and checked for any signs of life.
Oh, how fragile she looked.
She was so small I could cradle her entire body in my arms.
And without any difficulty, I picked her up.
Aura’s forehead rested against my shoulder.
Sora’s eyes flashed with fury, and a threatening roar escaped his throat.
A wave of killing intent washed over me.
I put all of my strength into holding onto Aura.
And I glared back at Sora.
“It’s okay. Come on.”
I was speaking to myself.
How――pleasant.
I felt a power filling me up.
But I couldn’t contain it all and screamed. But my scream sounded more like the howl of a beast than a person.
I wouldn’t let Sora kill Aura.
I would protect Aura.
Not for her sake, but my own. I would protect Aura.
Sora sensed the great power that was building within my body.
A thrilling surge of pleasure raced down my spine.
“Sora! Chase after me!”
I shouted to him, and then I leapt.
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